Danforth clinic to become new LCBO outlet

LCBO outlet opening on Danforth Avenue

The LCBO plans to open a number of new stores in downtown Toronto, including one in a long-abandoned clinic on the Danforth slated to be torn down and replaced with a building just for the liquor shop’s use.

The former site of the Albany Clinic at 200 Danforth Ave. has been vacant since April of 2010, when the service moved to a new building on nearby Broadview Avenue.

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario confirmed Friday it intends to tear down the existing structure and build a new store, which will open in the spring of 2012.

“The plans are to relocate the old location [across the street],” said Chris Layton, LCBO media relations co-ordinator. “What we are looking to do is to significantly increase the amount of shopping area and naturally be able to offer a lot more in terms of product selection and services.”

The store will be one of the larger LCBO models, offering about 8,500 square feet of shopping space, almost three times the size of the current store located at 213 Danforth Ave. Indications are that the store will have a second level, but for staff use only.

The move is sure to draw the attention of those in the neighbourhood concerned about big box-style stores cropping up on the charming and touristy stretch of the Danforth known as the city’s Greektown.

There was a significant amount of upset when the large, two-storey Shopper’s Drug Mart store was built on the Danforth near Broadview — less than a block away from the abandoned medical clinic and soon-to-be-LCBO. While under construction in 2008, critics complained of a noted influx of large, single-use stores opening on downtown strips, proclaiming it a “suburbanization of the city.” Other examples include the Shoppers Drug Mart at Queen and Parliament, the LCBO on Yonge north of Davisville and the Canadian Tire at Lake Shore Boulevard East and Leslie Street. The large stores were built despite the outcry.

Mary Fragedakis, councillor of the Danforth Ward 29, supports the LCBO’s plans and said applications are in progress.

She has viewed the proposed plans and said it will be a newer-model LCBO. “It’s quite stylish in terms of what it looks like,” she said.

“They want to stay in the area, but they just want a bigger retail space. We welcome them to the north side of the street.”

Other locations around downtown Toronto can expect to see more of the government-run liquor retailer.

On Dec. 1, a smaller location will be opening in Little Italy at 549 College St. at Euclid Avenue.

A 4,000-square-foot store will be opening in December in the former Maple Leafs Garden building, at 60 Carlton St. at Church Street.

Among several other new stores due to open in the months ahead are ones in the St. Lawrence Market and on King Street East, according to the LCBO website — areas teeming with condominiums.

“In Toronto, communities are expanding, so we are trying to increase services and selection in different areas and communities in the city,” said Mr. Layton.

As for the Danforth location, the application is under review because of the location of a proposed loading dock.

“It’s kind of a prominent corner, so they won’t be able to use the west side for the loading space,” said Denise Graham, a senior Toronto city planner. “We are suggesting it go on the north side.”